A public pension fund is one that is regulated under public sector law while a private pension fund is regulated under private sector law.

In certain countries the distinction between public or government pension funds and private pension funds may be difficult to assess. In others, the distinction is made sharply in law, with very specific requirements for administration and investment. For example, local governmental bodies in the United States are subject to laws passed by the states in which those localities exist, and these laws include provisions such as defining classes of permitted investments and a minimum municipal obligation.[5][6]

Employees' Provident Fund Organisation – a statutory body of the government of India that administers a compulsory Provident Fund Scheme, Pension Scheme and an Insurance Scheme. Provident Fund is applicable across for employees across establishments (private as well as government, subject to criteria). EPF is the largest social security organisation in India with assets well over ₹ 5 lakh crore (US$104 billion) as of 2014.[30]

National Pension Scheme – a defined-contribution–based pension scheme launched by the government of India open to all citizens of India on a voluntary basis and mandatory for the employees of central government (except Indian Armed Forces) who are appointed on or after 1 January 2004. Indian citizens between the age of 18 and 65 are eligible to join.[31]

The pension system in Romania is made of three pillars. One is the state pension (Pillar I – Mandatory), the second is a private mandatory pension where the state transfers a percentage of the contribution it collects for the public pension, and the third is an optional private pension (Pillar III – Voluntary).

The Financial Supervisory Authority – Private Pension is responsible for the supervision and regulation of the private pension system.[33]

Social Security Institution was established by the Social Security Institution Law No:5502 which was published in the Official Gazette No: 26173 dated 20.06.2006 and brings the Social Insurance Institution, General Directorate of Bağ-kur and General Directorate of Emekli Sandığı whose historical development are summarized above under a single roof in order to transfer five different retirement regimes which are civil servants, contractual paid workers, agricultural paid workers, self-employers and agricultural self-employers into a single retirement regime that will offer equal actuarial rights and obligations.

OYAK (Ordu Yardımlaşma Kurumu/Armed Forces Pension Fund) provides its members with "supplementary retirement benefits" apart from the official retirement fund, T.C.Emekli Sandığı/SSK, to which they are primarily affiliated.

In addition to the retirement benefit, OYAK pays "disability benefits" to the members on duty when they become partially or fully disabled as well as "death benefits" to the heirs of the deceased member if the death occurs during the member's subscription to the foundation.

OYAK is incorporated as a private entity under its own law subject to Turkish civic and commercial codes. OYAK, while fulfilling its legal duties, as set in the law, also provides its members with social services such as loans, home loans and retirement income systems.

The initial source of OYAK's funds is a compulsory 10 percent levy on the base salary of Turkey's 200,000 serving officers who, together with 25,000 current pensioners, make up OYAK's members.

In the United States, pension funds include schemes which result in a deferral of income by employees, even if retirement income provision isn't the intent.[35] The United States has $19.1 trillion in retirement and pension assets ($9.1 trillion in private funds, $10 trillion in public funds) as of December 31, 2016.[36] The largest 200 pension funds accounted for $4.540 trillion as of September 30, 2009.[37]